Improved water-proof soles



UNITED STATES i PATENT OFFICE.

JoHN W. CCEUHN, 0E NEW HAvEN, CONNECTICUT, AssIeNon ro HrMsELE y AND O.F. CASE, OF SAME PLACE.

IMPROVED WATER-PROOF SOLES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 48,481, dated Junev 27,lS65.

To all whom it may concern.-

Beit known that I, JOHN W. COBURN, ofNew Haven, in the county of NewHaven and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in'the Manufacture of Water- Proof Soles for Boots andShoes; and I do herebydeclare the following to be a full, clear, andexact description of the same,when taken in connection with theaccompanying draw ings and the letters ot" reference marked there on,and which said drawings constitute part of this specitication, andrepresent, in-

Figure 1, a view of whole sole and heel; Fig. 2, a half-sole; Fig. 3, asection of the same; and Fig. 4, section of half-sole, the rubberthicker than its edging. Y

My invention relates to an improvement in the manufacture of water-proofsoles for boots and shoes, whereby the water-proof sole may be securedIto the boot or shoe inthe usual manner of securing` leather soles; andit consists in forming the sole of indiarubber or similarwater-proofcompound with an edge ot' leather cemented around it. y l

To enable others skilled in the art to make and apply my improvement, Iwill proceed to fully describe my manner of so doing.

. In describing my invention I use the word boot7 as including everydescription of boots or shoes. y

I rst construct a mold ot the form and size required for the sole,whether it he for whole sole, Fig.`1, half-sole, Fig. 2, or heel, Fig.l. I then take a narrow strip of sole-leather, place it in the -moldaround the edge, coating the inner edge of the said leather strip withthe proper cement for uniting rubber to the leather. The cement I use isthe common rubber cement, composed of about sixteen parts litharge,thirty-two parts india-rubber, one part sulphur, ground together anddissolved in camphene or benzine, one gallon to twelve pounds of thecompound. I then till the spaces within the said leather strip withindia-rubber, clear, fabricated, or any of its compounds or equivalentstherefor; then cure the said rubber, &c., in the usual manner, whichcompletes the sole.

I cure my sole in similar manner as for curing common india-rubber-thatis, while in lthe mold place them in an oven heated to about greatobjection, which myinvention entirely A overcomes. y

If in applying my improved sole it shall be deemed expedient tointroduce gum between the rubber part of the sole and the sole of the lboot, it may be done in the usual manner; but it is not essential.

The rubber may be, and Iprefer to makeit, a little thicker than itsleather rim, as seen in Fig. 4.

The outer surface of the rubber part of the sole may be covered in wholeor simplyvover the seam by thin rubber cloth or other material cementedon, and thejoint maybe a butt or a lap and butt one, and may becorrugated, roughened, or otherwise prepared to prevent slipping.

Having thus fully described my invention, I would state that Iam awarethat a sole has heretofore been made of three parts-viz., anindia-rubber sole, a leather insole or lining, and a border or binding'of leather, and cemented or sewed together; butsuch soles have not beenfound of sufficient resistance to Wear to become useful. I lay no claimto any such sole; but g What I do claim, and desire to secure by LettersPatent, is i A sole composed of an interior of rubber and a margin ofsole-leather cemented together by a vertical butt-joint, and of uniformthickness, or nearly so, Without an insole, and made substantially asherein described.

JOHN W. COBURN.

Witnesses:

J CHN E. EARLE, MARY A. EINE;

